Mountain Way Common bridge opens Sept. 2; food trucks hold last meal

It is always gratifying—and sometimes a miracle—when a plan works and everything seems to come together, even if there is a last-minute wrinkle or two. That is expected to be the case on Wednesday, Sept. 2 in North Buckhead.

The scene from the street following April’s ceremony officially dedicating Mountain Way Common Park.

The Friends of Mountain Way Common, a program of Livable Buckhead, will have the final Food Truck Wednesday event of the season from 6-9 p.m. on the same day as the ribbon cutting ceremony of the Mountain Way Common pedestrian bridge, which happens at 10 a.m.

A map of Mountain Way Common when completed, with inset of the bridge.

The bridge ribbon cutting event in the morning will honor partners and neighbors who have contributed to making the bridge and park a reality: The Friends of Mountain Way Common, MWC Founding Friends, City of Atlanta Department of Parks and Recreation, Dist. 7 City Councilman Howard Shook, Park Pride and Livable Buckhead.

More details about the ribbon cutting events can be found online at (www.MountainWayCommon.Org). If planning to attend, RSVP by Aug. 25 at friendsofmwc@gmail.com or by phone at 404-273-0849. Limited parking will be available along one side of Mountain Way.

The two events on one day is the good part of everything coming together according to a plan. Unfortunately, the city has added a glitch to the format

Photo shows the pedestrian bridge after it was installed July 9 at Mountain Way Common.

of the final Food Truck Wednesday—a wrinkle to address city permitting concerns.

As a result, cash/credit cards can no longer be accepted by the food truck vendors. Instead, anyone interested in purchasing food needs to go to the Livable Buckhead website (http://livablebuckhead.com/) before Sep. 2 and pay $15 per person for a ticket in advance. From each ticket sold, $3 will be donated to MWC for future park improvements.

A group of the volunteers work on cleaning up part of Mountain Way Common on Aug. 8.

The progress at Mountain Way Common has largely been proportionate to the commitment of volunteers. On Saturday, Aug. 8, 35 volunteers arrived on site at Buckhead’s newest greenspace. Brought together by Park Pride, this group set out to tackle multiple projects throughout the space to make it more appealing and accessible to visitors.

One group set to work creating a well-defined walking path that runs parallel to Little Nancy Creek. A second cut ivy from trees to improve site lines in the park (as well as the health of the tree!), while another group cleared invasive privet from around the greenspace’s entrance.

That, combined with a new entrance path into the park (completed by a third group of volunteers), has created a much more inviting appearance, welcoming visitors into Mountain Way Common.

Meanwhile, Park Pride is seeking applications for its 2016 Park Visioning Program, a program that works with communities to help them re-imagine their parks and results in a tangible park master plan that can be used in fundraising efforts and as groups work with the city to prioritize improvements.

In 2016, Park Pride will work with two communities in the city of Atlanta as part of the Park Visioning Program. The deadline to apply is Tuesday, Sept. 8, at 5 p.m. For more information on the program, to review park master plans created through this process, and for information about how to apply, visit Park Pride’s website: www.parkpride.org.

Since 2005, Park Pride has helped over 30 communities develop Park Visioning Plans for their neighborhood parks. To date, these community-driven conceptual plans have leveraged over $14 million toward implementation of park improvements.